Bottom dollar? No it's a bottom pound

With the pound tumbling to its lowest level in five years, moneysupermarket.com is warning holidaymakers that now, more than ever, they should be using the best credit and debit card overseas.

With the pound falling from 1.44 to 1.29 Euros in the past year and from 2.05 to 1.71 Dollars , those heading overseas need to ensure they don't lose out by also being hit with hefty foreign exchange fees and transaction charges.

Steve Willey, head of credit cards at moneysupermarket.com, said: "While the weakness of the pound is of concern to holidaymakers and online shoppers, using the wrong foreign exchange product can be even more costly.

"A credit card with purchase protection of 90 or more days is the best option for purchases overseas. Not only do the credit cards from the Post Office and Nationwide offer this, but they also have zero per cent purchase offers of three months and don't levy foreign exchange fees. This is a far better prospect than most of their rivals that charge between 2.50 and three per cent.

"The Nationwide Flex debit card is the best product for overseas cash withdrawals as there are no extra charges. In contrast, a $100 withdrawal with a Lloyds TSB debit card would incur a £2 transaction charge plus a $2.99 foreign exchange fee."